# Sticky  Suggested Cigar Bombing Guidelines



## Bird-Dog

Sending cigar bombs to friends we make here on the forum is a longstanding Puff tradition. But every so often we get a new crop of members who, lacking that historic perspective, take it to extremes that misconstrue the established customs of this time-honored practice.

Here are some suggested guidelines in the classic Puff tradition:


*Select your target purposefully* - Commonly, someone who you've gotten to know well, or has done you or the forum a good deed. In some cases a friendly Noob in need of expanding their cigar experience may be a likely target, but please use discretion as we do not wish to encourage unscrupulous new members who might try to take advantage of the forum's reputation for generosity.
*Send it for the right reasons* - A cigar gift is a reflection of admiration and appreciation, not an opportunity to show off or shine the light on yourself.
*Send a reasonable amount* - Your goal is not to embarrass the recipient, nor place them in an awkward position trying to reciprocate. Also remember that this is not a contest to outdo previous senders of cigar bombs, nor to challenge future senders to outdo you.
*Your reward is personal satisfaction* - Some members prefer not to post publicly about gifts received; a simple "thank you" PM should be no more than you expect in return (if even that). Likewise, any expectation of reciprocation is contrary to the spirit of gifting. If you're sending cigars with the expectation of receiving something back in return you should be arranging a trade, not sending an unsolicited cigar bomb.
*Respect the cigars and forum norms* - Send cigars that are in good condition. Pack them well and send by a reliably swift method. Try not to re-gift cigars you've received as gifts. Where necessary, include information identifying both the cigars and yourself. Under normal circumstances, Puff cigar bombs are traditionally five cigars or fewer, perhaps a few more under certain specific and unusual conditions (but only a few more).
*Consider the impact on the forum* - Like PIF's, MAW's, passes, and other trades, sending cigar bombs is not meant to be a game of one-upmanship. To treat them as such can be detrimental to the forum, potentially causing others to abandon their memberships for feeling unable or unwilling to "compete". Likewise, some members may feel alienated from the community when it becomes more about sending and receiving cigars than our core mission of discussing them.

When things do get out of control we all need to take a step back and try to encourage a return to saner levels, both in size and scope. There is no doubt of the generosity involved in these "super bombs", but in truth they can also be detrimental to the long-term health of the forum as a community by alienating members who may mistakenly begin to see it as the only accepted way of participating in the forum; a game of one-upmanship that they are either not prepared to compete in, or simply not interested in participating in. It's up to all of us, moderators and members alike to keep our house in order with an open-door policy and avoid the perception of an off-putting environment.

Please note that much of this also applies to PIF's, MAW's, passes, and trades. It's impossible to tell you how to self-police the number of cigar bombs and other exchanges flying back-and-forth, except to say, pay attention to the "why" of cigar bombing as well as the "what" and "how much" of all exchanges. Cigars zooming hither-and-yon in ever escalating numbers and amounts just to perpetuate ill-placed gamesmanship defeats the purpose of making the recipient of a gift feel special and appreciated, or fellow trading partners feeling they've given as fairly as they gotten.


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## Bird-Dog

I've been asked why five cigars is such a typical recommended number for not only cigar bombs, but also PIF's, MAW's and trades. The answer is very simple. That is the most common capacity of finger bags, though three-finger bags are also common and I keep both on-hand.

Finger bags are ziplocks with seams built in to separate cigars, which keeps the cigars from rubbing against each other while being contained in a convenient airtight package for packing and shipping. There are at least a couple of sources for them, but cigarbags.com is the most prevalent (and in my experience the thickest material and best quality).


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